rebirth...

spring sunshine awakens the sleeping in a garden...

the warmth draws the beauty forth...

we are a lot like a garden...

only blooming when the conditions are right...

if all is right with the root system...

the plant comes forth with magnificent colors...

the most important part of the plant is the part you cannot see...

but you can tell from the surface that all is well underneath...

and the rebirth is complete...

are you reborn?

are your roots well tended?

does your outward image reflect your soul?

and is all well with your soul?

flesh is flesh and spirit is spirit...

are you reborn in spirit?

nourished by the Son?

brought forth by grace?

and just like a garden, we do not all bloom at the same time...

we all have our seasons...

our special time...

when he calls us from out of the darkness...

to shine...

where ever you are today...

blooming or darkness...

its ok...

we all have our time...

it does not mean that all is not well with our roots...

when we are not blooming...

we are gathering strength...

being tended by loving hands...

getting ready to shine...

we have many chances in our life to bloom and grow and multiply...

times to be watered and weeded and pruned...

the master gardener is working His garden...

be patient...

your spring will come...

spring fever, in a can...

well, things keep getting greener and bloomers keep blooming...

lilac...

won't bloom this year...

needs another coat of paint this year...

lily of the valley are coming up...

and the trees are starting to green up a bit, too...

more fun coming soon...

ordered some paint from the hardware store...

couldn't get the color I wanted, but this was close...

the mail box before...

during...

birdcage also got shot...

and the birds on the birdbath...

needs sanded down a tiny bit...

and after...

more yellow...

replaces the daffodils, which are toast now...

and the forsythia is fading...

DH worked today, but when he got home, we headed for the deli...

and Bebe wasn't too sure about this...

he has never gotten gas here before...

and he was shaking a bit...

we came home, ate supper...

got bored...

so we had our first official bonfire of the season...

which got rained out...

started sprinkling as soon as we lit it...

but it wasn't much so we sat out there for awhile...

until it rained a little harder and came in...

looking around, there is so much to do yet, but its too early...

some crazy farmers are planting corn...

silly boys...

their crop insurance isn't any good on anything planted before the middle of April...

but the have been plowing  up a storm...

and the dogwood are blooming...

I know that's what I look forward to the most...

;)

a little of today and a little of yesterday...what I left behind...

the leaves are really starting to pop out here...

tulips are opening...

I love yellow...

DH and the kids got these for me in an Easter pot covered in foil...

forced for the holiday and everyone said they would never make it...

I was wasting my time planting them...

well, they have been coming up for over 25 years now...

never say never...

cloudy days in the garden are wonderful, too...

we sat around and waiting all day for bad storms...

but we didn't have anything bad...

just .2 of rain late this afternoon...

there was golf ball sized hail south west of here- Effingham area...

but it moved straight north...

going through Mattoon, Arcola and Tuscola...

hostas are coming along...

and we had some sun peaking through...

and the skies were busy sending clouds on their way...

and here are some shots of what I left behind yesterday...

the photos are not the best...

I  need to slow down and let the camera focus...

but you get an idea of what they have...

love Mr Rabbit...

there is something for every taste...

well, unless you are modern or something like that...

I could haul all of the furniture home...

wondering how cool would that look in my kitchen...

and how many tries it would take to find the right drawer...

they have silks and berry twigs, too...

springy things everywhere...

and I found the bunny...

they have a selection of candles, too...

will get a  shot of them the next time I go out there...

this is on the wall behind the counter and not for sale...

I so agree!

see the sheep????

yeah, I did, too...

pondering on if they would like to live here or not...

ok, see this bulb...

fun, huh?

there are a whole bunch of them in an egg crate on the counter...

Craig thought I needed a bunny one, and in the bag he went...

see the Easter tree????

so maybe I'm not as mad as a hatter to re- purpose the christmas tree for every holiday...

might as well get your money's worth out of it...

it's not a big shop...

just the right size to have some fun in...

and the owners are friendly...

and he is the gardener with the super green thumb...

will have to show you what he does later when it all starts blooming well...

and that's the what I left behind...

can't wait until they get a new shipment in...

the weekend before Mother's Day is supposed to be a big deal...

with new plants and springy things for the garden...

just you wait and see...

they are on facebook as Ninny's Country Cupboard...

Kansas, Illinois...

www.ninnyscountrycupboard.com